Berkeley will return Ohlone site to indigenous trust [Video]

BERKELEY, Calif. – The city of Berkeley has agreed to return the Ohlone Shellmound Village site to an indigenous trust.

City councilmembers on Tuesday announced a settlement to purchase the site, which is a parking lot now, and hand it over to the Sogorea Te’ Land Trust,

The 2.2 acre site, at the mouth of Strawberry Creek, was the first human settlement on the shores of the San Francisco Bay. It dates back 5,700 years.

“This was a long, long effort but it was honestly worth it because what we’re doing today is righting past wrongs and returning stolen land to the people who once lived on it,” said Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguin, according to Fox News.

Ohlone tribal leaders say this marks one of the most significant victories for the urban “land back” movement in California.

“We’re getting our land that belongs to us and I tell everybody that I see every day that this …